AUSTIN – In a study released this week by the U.S. Department of
Education, only Iowa posted a higher graduation rate than Texas for the Class
of 2012. Texas, with a graduation rate of 88 percent, tied for second place
with Nebraska, Vermont and Wisconsin.

In addition, the Texas Class of 2012 had the highest graduation rate in
the country among African-American students and tied for the highest graduation
rates for white and economically disadvantaged students.

According to the First Look
report from the National Center for Education Statistics, the national high
school graduation rate hit 79 percent for the class of 2011 and 80 percent for
the class of 2012. Commissioner of Education Michael Williams noted that Texas’
overall graduation rate for both classes easily exceeded the national averages.

“Texas educators continue to be among the leaders in assuring students
reach the finish line and are prepared for life after high school,” said
Commissioner Williams. “While these numbers reflect the hard work accomplished on
campuses all across our state, I have no doubt teachers and counselors would
agree there is more we can do to help every student earn their high school
diploma.”

For the class of 2012, Texas posted a graduation rate of 88 percent,
well above the national average (80 percent) and tied with three other states
for second highest. Iowa posted a graduation rate of 89 percent.

For the class of 2012, Texas’ graduation rates in almost every key
demographic ranked either first, second, or third compared to other states.

Class of 2012

TEXAS

RANK

UNITED STATES

All Students

88%

2nd (tie)

80%

White

93%

1st (tie)

86%

Hispanic

84%

2nd

73%

African-American

84%

1st

69%

Economically Disadvantaged

85%

1st (tie)

72%

Students with Disabilities

77%

3rd (tie)

61%

For the class of 2011, Texas posted a graduation rate of 86 percent,
well above the national average (79 percent) and tied with five other states
for third highest. Vermont and Wisconsin posted a graduation rate of 87 percent,
and Iowa posted a graduation rate of 88 percent.

For the class of 2011, Texas’ graduation rates in almost every key
demographic ranked first, second, or third compared to other states.

Class of 2011

TEXAS

RANK

UNITED STATES

All Students

86%

3rd (tie)

79%

White

92%

1st

84%

Hispanic

82%

3rd

71%

African-American

81%

2nd (tie)

67%

Economically Disadvantaged

84%

1st

70%

Students with Disabilities

77%

1st

59%

The public high school event dropout rate for the United States remained constant at 3.3 percent for both
the 2010-2011 and 2011-2012 school years. Conversely, Texas’ high school event dropout
rate was 2.4 percent in 2010-2011 and 2.5 percent in 2011-2012.

The National Center for Education Statistics is the primary
federal entity for collecting, analyzing and reporting data related to education
in the United States and other nations. To review the complete First Look report,
visit http://nces.ed.gov/pubs2014/2014391.pdf.